Judge dismisses charges against mall protest organizers
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - A Minnesota judge Tuesday dismissed charges against organizers of a “Black Lives Matter” protest that drew thousands of demonstrators to the Mall of America.
The protest last December disrupted Christmas shopping at the privately owned venue. But Hennepin County Chief Judge Peter Cahill ruled that it was peaceful and “not subversive.”
Organizers of the protest had faced misdemeanor charges of aiding and abetting trespass, aiding and abetting unlawful assembly, and aiding and abetting disorderly conduct.
In a 137-page decision, Cahill dismissed all charges against the 11 organizers, but left in place trespass charges against some individual participants, the Star Tribune (https://strib.mn/1WLgaNrhttps://strib.mn/1WLgaNr ) reported.
“We stand proud today. We stand vindicated today,” said University of St. Thomas law professor Nekima Levy-Pounds, one of the protest organizers. “And we continue to stand in solidarity with people across the country who are declaring that Black Lives Matter and who are disrupting the status quo in their attempts to get justice.
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Minnesota farmers poised for record corn, soybean crops
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) - With Minnesota’s fall harvest nearly over, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has boosted forecasts for what were already expected to be record corn and soybean crops.
Tuesday’s update estimates Minnesota’s corn production at 1.45 billion bushels, or 5 percent higher than the record set in 2012. Yields are projected to average 187 bushels per acre, up 31 bushels from 2014 and 10 above the record set in 2010.
Minnesota soybean production is forecast at 379 million bushels, which is 15 percent above the 2010 record. Yields are projected at 50 bushels per acre, beating a record 45.5 bushels in 2005.
Sugarbeet production is forecast at 12.1 million tons, the second-largest on record, with a record yield of 28 tons per acre, topping the record of 26.6 tons set in 2010.
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Minnesota hunters register over 68K deer at start of season
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) - Minnesota hunters registered over 68,400 deer on the first three days of the state’s firearms deer season.
The Department of Natural Resources says that’s up over 6 percent from the first three days of the 2014 season, when regulations were tightened to rebuild the state’s deer herd. The buck harvest for the first three days of the firearms season was up 8.5 percent from last year.
Steve Merchant, the DNR’s wildlife populations manager, says hunters are seeing more deer this year, and that limits on antlerless permits means they’re seeing more deer they can’t shoot. But he says hunter patience this year should translate into more opportunities later.
The DNR projects the total harvest this season at 140,000 to 155,000, compared with just over 139,000 after last year’s conservative season.
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Cost of pedestrian bridge near Vikings stadium grows
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - The cost has grown for a pedestrian bridge serving the new Minnesota Vikings stadium in downtown Minneapolis.
The Star Tribune (https://strib.mn/1HFHjVVhttps://strib.mn/1HFHjVV ) reports a Metropolitan Council committee Monday approved a new price tag that’s nearly $2.7 million more than expected.
The proposal is now estimated at $9.65 million. A final vote is expected when the regional planning body meets Dec. 9.
The Met Council received just two bids for the work. The project involves building a bridge between U.S. Bank Stadium and a new park and other parts of a redeveloped Downtown East. The idea is to avoid a pedestrian crush near the busy light-rail transit station.
The Met Council had budgeted $7 million for the project. But when bids arrived in October, the two received were far higher than anticipated.
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